Bethesda Metro Elevators Waiting On State Inspection

The reopening date for the Bethesda Metro station elevator has been pushed back to Friday, Dec. 28, but Metro officials say the project is done and is awaiting a required state inspection.

Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said the elevator is going through state inspection and “it is our hope that it will be done later this week and placed back into service.”

The elevator project has been closely watched since it started in May, especially by those who can’t use the station’s three escalators (at 212 feet the second longest in the Western Hemisphere.)

County leaders pressed for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to speed up the escalator replacement process, since they often go out because of old age. But Metro will proceed with its scheduled replacement of the escalators in 2014.

The escalators have been the lone entry and exit point at the Bethesda station since the elevator was closed for rehabilitation.

Last Thursday, Metro reported the escalators went out around 2:30 p.m. and they were back operating at 3:11 p.m.

Bethesda: All entrance escalators are out of service due to a mechanical problem. Shuttle service requested. The station remains open.

Still, it’s caused headaches for some riders. On Nov. 1, Metro said the scheduled reopening of the elevators in October had been pushed back three weeks. On Nov. 28, Metro officials told The Gazette the elevators could be reopened as soon as the next week, depending on the availability of state inspectors.